


Getting the Dad's Together

by theratheller



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Castiel in the Men of Letters Bunker (Supernatural), Dean and Cas Are Oblivious, DeanCas - Freeform, Destiel - Freeform, Domestic Fluff, First Kiss, Jack Kline Ships Castiel/Dean Winchester, Jack Knows, Love Confessions, M/M, Men of Letters Bunker (Supernatural), Oblivious Castiel/Dean Winchester, Requited Love, Sam Knows, Sam Winchester Ships Castiel/Dean Winchester, jack thinks dean and cas are already married
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-18
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 03:53:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29536398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theratheller/pseuds/theratheller
Summary: Jack misunderstands Cas and Dean's relationship. Or does he?Where Jack thinks his two dad's are already married, and Sam has to deliver the sad truth. But that won't stop either of them from getting those two fools to admit their feelings for each other once and for all.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 37
Kudos: 137





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> We love a parent trap scenario. Enjoy xx

Jack picked up a random crystal off the shelf, its bright saturated blue had drawn his eye from among the paler stones in its presence. He held it up, inspecting it. The sunlight streaming in through the windows reflected off its smooth polished surface. 

“You done playing with the rocks kid?” Dean muttered as he walked up behind him. 

Jack glanced up and raised his brows in confusion; having not paid enough attention to hear Dean’s chastising. Dean only rolled his eyes and gestured for Jack to follow him out of the small store. He gently grabbed the stone from Jack’s hand and began to place it back on the shelf.

As he did, Mindy; the eccentric store-clerk he’d been questioning; walked up to them. They’d already been taking for a while, which is why Jack had wandered away in the first place. He didn’t understand most of their conversation and they’d stopped talking about the case a while back. 

“Ah, you were drawn to the Lapis Lazuli, a powerful stone.” 

Dean smiled playfully at her, tilting his head. “Really?”

“Oh definitely. It can help you tap into your inner strength and endurance.” She let the sentence draw out slightly before continuing. “Like I said I could definitely give you some pointers on all this stuff sometime.” She smiled, looking up at him through her lashes. 

Jack glanced back and forth between the two, frowning slightly. Was this flirting? He’d seen it on TV a lot, but he couldn’t always tell in real life. He tried going back over the bits and pieces of their conversation he’d listened in on earlier, but that didn’t give him any more clarity. 

He furrowed his brow in contemplation. As far as he knew you weren’t allowed to flirt with people if you were married. 

Before he could consider further, Jack was snapped out of his thoughts by Dean’s voice directed at him. He hadn’t realised that the other two had finished their conversation. 

“Well Agent, let’s get going.” Dean patted Jack on the shoulder lightly. 

“See you around agents” Mindy called out as they walked away. 

Dean chuckled to himself lightly, toying with a piece of paper in his hands as he walked out the door and up to the Impala. 

“What’s that?” Jack questioned as he trailed behind him. 

Dean looked up, lost for a moment before it clicked. “Oh, it’s the crystal chick’s number.” 

“Mindy? Why did she give you her number? Were you two flirting?” The disapproval in Jack’s tone did not go unnoticed. 

Dean raised a brow and glanced around confusedly. “What? You going all protective on me kid?”

Jack frowned slightly. A pout was threatening to come forth, which caused Dean to cave and answer the question properly. Not before rolling his eyes, however. 

“I mean, well yeah- I guess we were.” 

“But what about-“ 

Before Jack could finish his sentence, Dean’s phone started ringing. He held up his hand gesturing for Jack to wait, as he stepped away and answered it. Meanwhile, Jack stayed in place; bubbling in his confusion and concern as the other man’s phone conversation droned on nearby. 

So they had been flirting! Did that count as cheating? Jack didn’t know much about the topic. He decided that he’d have to go find out more back at the bunker. As he drafted his plan, he was snapped out of his thoughts again by Dean’s voice. 

“It’s Cas, he was asking for updates. I told him this was a bust so we’re on our way back.” Dean explained as he walked back over. He scrunched the paper he’d been holding as he did so, absentmindedly dropping it before sliding into the driver’s seat of the Impala. 

“Oh, okay.” Jack halfheartedly responded before getting into the car. 

As they drove off Jack decided it may be better to ask Sam about this. Dean may not answer properly, and he didn’t want to tell Cas about it yet. He could be wrong about the cheating thing; in which case he didn’t want to upset Cas for no reason. 

“So what was that little interrogation about?” 

“Sorry?” Jack looked over at Dean. 

“About the chick from the store?” Dean countered. 

“Oh! Oh, nothing.” Jack smiled tightly at Dean. It wasn’t convincing, and Dean’s face said as much. However, he didn’t press for answers. 

…

As they walked back into the bunker, Castiel approached the two of them. He nodded at Dean and looked over at Jack. 

“Hello Jack, how was-“

“I have to go talk to Sam!” In the time he’d had to stew in the Impala, Jack had grown more and more panicked. So, he hurriedly bolted past Cas, rushing towards the direction of Sam’s room.

This left Cas and Dean looking at each other and then back at Jack’s retreating form concernedly for a moment. Ultimately, Dean shrugged and began to head over to the kitchen while Castiel eyed him incredulously. 

Meanwhile, Jack reached Sam’s doorway and gushed out in one breath the question plaguing him: “Are Dean and Cas getting divorced!?” 

Sam whipped his head up suddenly at Jack, who stood in his doorway with a sorrowful expression on his face. 'Kicked puppy' was the description that popped into Sam’s head. 

“I- What?” Sam sputtered out. 

“Are they getting divorced?” Jack stepped forward, his voice growing more panicked. 

Sam stared blankly at him, opening, and closing his mouth several times before he was able to answer. 

“Jack, relax. Why do you think…“ He blanked again for a moment before continuing. “Why do you think Cas and Dean are married?” 

This time it was Jack who looked confused. He frowned at the question.

“What do you mean?”

“Jack – Cas and Dean aren’t married” Sam spoke slowly, narrowing his eyes. He stepped toward Jack gently as if he were approaching a skittish animal. 

Jack glanced around at the ground; his face strained in concentration. He finally looked up a moment later with a puzzled expression. 

“So they’re not married yet?” Jack asked, emphasizing the last word. 

Sam was again, at a loss for words momentarily. 

“No I mean- They aren’t actually together. They aren’t a couple.” Sam responded almost apologetically. 

Jack frowned at him, disbelief clouding his features. He slowly stepped inside the room and sat down on the edge of Sam’s bed. 

“That makes no sense- they seem in love?”

“Tell me about it.” 

At this Jack tilted his head at Sam questioningly. Sam sighed, sitting down next to him as he began to explain. 

“Listen there’s definitely something there. But I don’t think either of them has realised it yet.” Sam smiled at him, shaking his head lightly. 

“So they- they do love each other? But they don’t know it?” Jack asked sadly. 

“I think so.” Sam nodded before confusion suddenly clouded his features again. He looked over at Jack. “Wait, why did you think they were getting divorced? Did they have another fight?” 

Jack shook his head before responding solemnly. “Dean was flirting with the lady at the crystal store. I thought he was cheating on Castiel.” 

Sam coughed down a chuckle, before shooting Jack a curious look. “Did you ask Dean about all this?” 

“I did ask him if he was flirting with her, but not about Cas.” Jack considered for a moment. “Should I have?” 

“Ah, it’s probably for the best you didn’t. I don’t think he’d handle the direct approach well here.” Sam pursed his lips slightly. 

“What do you mean?” 

“He might freak out. I think he needs to realise it on his own.” Sam sighed as if he wished that weren’t the case. 

They sat in silence for a moment. 

Then, suddenly, Jack’s eyes widened, and he looked over at Sam with a smile. 

“I think I have an idea.” 

…

“What’s going on with Jack?” 

Dean put his beer down on the kitchen counter, glancing up at Castiel who’d just walked through the kitchen door. Dean shrugged in response. 

“I don’t know, but the kids been acting weird today.” 

“Weird how?” Cas questioned. His worry was apparent.

Dean waved his hand dismissively. “Nothing bad, he’s just been- I don’t know- weird. He was asking me all these questions about why I was flirting with the chick at the store. Then he just ran off to Sam as soon as we got back, I don’t know.” He picked up his bottle, taking a sip. 

An unreadable expression crossed Castiel’s face for a moment, but it faded away just as quickly as he responded. 

“Should I talk to him?” 

Dean sighed, putting the bottle down again. He walked up to Cas. “Listen, man, I’m sure he’s fine. He went to talk to Sam, didn’t he? I’m sure whatever it is, Sam’s got a handle on it. He’ll talk to us if he wants to.” He attempted to give Cas a comforting expression. 

It seemed to work, as Cas relaxed slightly. 

“I’m sure you’re right.” He sighed. His shoulders were less tense, but his brows were still furrowed. He frowned at the floor. 

For a moment Dean was overcome with the urge to reach out and touch the other man’s face. Just to see his expression soften. As if he could caress the worry off of him. 

Then Castiel looked back up, and the weight of that thought and the blue eyes upon him became too much. He backed away to the safety of his beer. 

“So the crystal shop was a bust. Didn’t get anything useful from there.” Dean stated, hoping that the added buffer of conversation would distance him further from the previous moment. 

“Well, not entirely it sounds like” Cas stated blandly. 

Dean raised his brows in question. 

“I’m sure you got the store clerk’s number.” 

Dean snorted, nearly choking on his beer. 

“Cas buddy, was that sass? You’ve been hanging around Sam too much.” 

Cas only shrugged stiffly in response. 

Dean chuckled at him, shaking his head. There wasn’t any humour in it. He felt tense for a reason he couldn’t quite place. 

Before he could say anything, however, Jack walked in. He smiled widely at the two men in the kitchen. 

Dean frowned slightly. The kid looked way too happy, almost conspiratorial. 

“Hello Dean. Hello Cas. I was wondering. Could we please go out for family dinner?” He looked back and forth between the two of them, his grin not faltering for a moment. 

“What?” Dean asked, his frown deepening. 

“A family dinner. The four of us. Somewhere nice.” He responded as if he were reading off a list, or a script. 

Cas and Dean glanced at each other for a moment before Cas spoke up.

“I don’t see why not Jack. If that’ll make you happy.” He stated earnestly, smiling at Jack and then back at Dean. 

Dean started to interject, but Jack cut him off before he could get the first word out. 

“Great! I’ll tell Sam! He can pick a place.” 

And with that, he skipped out of the kitchen leaving the two men confusedly staring at his retreating form again. 

“What was that about?” Dean asked.

Cas looked at him, squinting. 

“You don’t think he was acting off?” Dean questioned incredulously, pointing his beer bottle in the direction of a long-gone Jack. 

“Maybe. But perhaps he just wants us all to spend more time together. We haven’t had a movie night or anything of the sort in a while. That may be why he was acting strange today.” Cas offered, sounding partially unconvinced, yet smiling lightly. 

“Yeah, maybe” Dean responded. 

“I’ll go get more details from Sam.” 

Dean detected a hint of excitement in Castiel’s tone. Clearly, he too quite liked the family dinner idea.

He watched Cas walk towards the kitchen exit before a thought from earlier grappled him. 

“I didn’t by the way-” He called out quickly, almost unwillingly. He hoped for a moment that Cas would miss it. He didn’t. 

Cas turned back around and tilted his head in confusion. A moment passed before Dean could continue.

“I didn’t keep her number.“ He fiddled with his beer bottle, unsure why he’d felt the need to clarify. He suddenly felt very warm and cursed himself internally. It’s not like Cas cared, it made no sense to bring it up. 

Cas looked at him questioningly for a moment before realization hit, and his face straightened out. 

“Oh. The store clerk?” He asked carefully as if didn’t seem to understand where Dean was going with the topic. Dean didn’t either. 

He huffed out a laugh. It was strained. “Yeah. I didn’t, I uh- You and Sam are always assuming things.” 

He hadn’t meant for that last sentence to come out defensive, but it did. He felt cornered. It was his own fault, but he didn’t know how to get back to safety and so he pushed. 

Cas blinked. “Oh um. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.” 

“Yeah well. It’s whatever.” Dean took a swig from his bottle. 

“I’ll go find Sam now.” 

“Okay, yeah.” 

He watched Castiel awkwardly make his exit.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Jack aren't the greatest at executing their rom-com inspired plans. 
> 
> Cas and Dean go to dinner. It doesn't go as intended.

“Winchester, right?” The host questioned, smiling up at Dean with his biggest customer service smile. It seemed painfully big. 

After many years of undercover gigs and fake identities, he was fairly good at picking up when someone was being genuine or not. This guy clearly was not feeling very smiley. Fair enough though; Dean thought to himself. The restaurant Sam had chosen seemed pretty stuffy, and the patrons even more so. It probably wasn’t the most fun of jobs. 

“Uh yeah.” 

“Right this way sirs.” 

Dean glanced over at Cas gesturing for him to go first, as he followed closely behind. Cas hesitantly followed the host.

It was still slightly uncanny seeing Cas out of his usual get up. Jack had insisted that they all dress up for the occasion, which meant Dean had just thrown on one of his FBI button-ups and some slacks. For Cas, it had meant being forced into a new set of duds. 

“Nice get up Professor” Dean had muttered after Cas had returned from his shopping trip with Sam and changed into his bookish new outfit. 

He still didn’t understand why Jack or Sam were making such a big deal out of a simple dinner. Hell, if it were up to him, they would’ve just ordered some pizza and been done with it. However, while he wasn’t the biggest fan of being bossed around into stuffy clothes and an even stuffier restaurant. He had to admit. He didn’t necessarily mind Cas’ new look. From a purely objective point of view, that is. 

If he were pressed, he’d say that the dark blue sweater made the blue of the angel’s eyes seem even deeper. That its fit highlighted how well built he was, much better than the oversized trench coat did – not that he didn’t love the coat too. He would have nothing to say about the slimmer fitting pants, however. In fact, he was pointedly staring up as high up as possible on Cas’ torso, away from them, as Cas walked with his back to him. 

“Here we are.” The host – Lee, according to his name tag – suddenly interrupted his musings. Dean flushed a little; embarrassed as if the other two men had heard his thoughts. Though of course, they hadn’t. In fact, Cas was more concerned about something else at that moment. 

“Um- where are the other chairs?” He questioned apologetically. 

“Sorry?” Lee queried. 

Dean looked at their table. It was a table set for two. 

“The reservation was for two” Lee stated somewhat hesitantly, as if he were bracing himself for conflict.

“That can’t be right.” Dean cut in. “There’s four of us.” 

When Lee glanced around awkwardly, Dean continued. 

“I mean- the other two are on their way.”

It had been weird when Sam and Jack had insisted that they drive separately to the restaurant. But he had figured he could question them more once they got here since they’d remained tight-lipped back at the bunker.

“I’ll go take another look at the booking. Until then did you gentlemen want to take a seat?” 

“Sure.” Dean shrugged and took his seat. Cas followed suit. 

As if on cue, as soon as Lee was out of sight, Castiel’s phone began to ring. 

“It’s Sam.” He frowned up at Dean concernedly before answering. 

The call didn’t last long, and aside from Cas asking Sam if everything was okay; the answer to which seemed to be enough to suffice him; Dean didn’t seem to detect anything concerning. As Cas put the phone down, he looked up at Dean with a slightly confused expression. 

“What’s up?”

“Sam says they can’t make it.” 

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“He says something came up and that we should just have dinner without them.” Castiel’s expression remained perplexed.

“Something came up? What?” Dean sputtered out, just as confused as the man across from him. 

“He wouldn’t say what. Should we-“ He hesitated slightly as if he didn’t want to say it. “Should we go back?”

Dean considered for a moment, but before he could answer, Lee returned to them looking frazzled. 

“I’m really sorry but the booking is for two on our system.” He glanced back and forth between the men at the table with the most apologetic grimace. 

“It’s okay, the other two can’t make it after all.” Cas politely informed him, clearly attempting to put him out of his distress. 

“Oh! Okay. I’ll uh. In that case, your server will be right over soon. Is there anything else I can do for you in the meantime?” He asked, wide-eyed. Dean felt bad for him. 

“No, we’re all good” Dean responded with a tight smile. 

“I’ll leave you to it then.” 

And with that, he was gone. 

“I guess we’re staying.” Dean shrugged at Cas. 

“I guess so.” 

Cas paused for a moment, before shaking his head and continuing on in a rush. 

“This is strange. Sam only booking a table for two, him and Jack not showing up- You were right Dean, something is off.” He frowned accusingly at the intricately folded napkin in front of him. 

“Right?” Dean huffed out incredulously. “Why are they parent trapping us-“ He paused suddenly. “Oh it’s this movie about-“

“I know about the Parent Trap Dean.” Cas deadpanned back.

“Jeez okay, you looked confused.”

“I was more confused about why they’d – parent trap us – as you say. We aren’t a-“ He suddenly cut himself off, a flustered expression crossing his face only for a moment before he continued. It was hesitant. “We aren’t fighting.” 

“Maybe they think we are?” Dean suggested, fiddling with the cutlery in front of him absentmindedly. 

Cas nodded noncommittedly before a determined expression crossed his face. 

“We must get to the bottom of this.” 

Dean stifled a chuckle at Castiel’s seriousness. Whatever Sam and Jack’s plot was here, he had to admit it was fun to get to team up and spend time with Cas like this. 

Dean straightened out his own face too in mock seriousness, dramatic enough so the other man would detect the humour in it. 

He nodded gravely at Cas, who rolled his eyes in return. 

…

“How do you think it’s going?” Jack asked, staring at Sam expectantly. 

Sam poked at his pizza for a moment before responding. He was also curious, and kind of wishing he’d gone with Jack's 'let’s follow them there and watch them from another table’ plan, as flimsy as it seemed. 

“I don’t know Jack, fingers crossed it's going well.” He considered further. “We probably shouldn’t get too hopeful though. It might not work straight away.” 

Jack nodded; he didn’t seem to mind. He sat quietly for a moment before asking another question. “Do you think they suspect anything?” 

“I don’t think so. I mean, I think we were pretty convincing.” Sam smiled smugly to himself. Together, he and Jack had come up with what he thought was a pretty great plan. His brother and Cas needed a bit of push, and this would hopefully be a start. 

The restaurant had been his idea, and the dressing up Jack's. He’d maybe seen one too many movies with makeover montages. But based on Dean’s slack-jawed reaction at Castiel’s new look, clearly, it had been a good addition. Though he really hoped the ‘professor’ comment had been a joke and not the new cowboy or doctor-esque... fascination. He shuddered to himself in horror. 

“You’re right” Jack responded, pulling him out of his nightmarish thoughts. 

Before either could say more, the bunker door swung open loudly. Jack and Sam both bolted upright where they sat. Glancing at each other and the pizza boxes scattered over the table frantically. 

“They aren’t supposed to be back this early!” Jack whispered yelled at Sam worriedly. 

“I know- I- Here, hide these in the fridge- Quickly!” He sent Jack scurrying away to the kitchen, boxes in tow. He ran his hands through his hair nervously as he watched Jack go. 

Just as Jack was out of sight, Castiel and Dean appeared before Sam. He jumped slightly as he turned to face them.

“Hey, guys. How’s it- Uh how’s it going?” Sam smiled unconvincingly. 

Cas narrowed his eyes at him.

“Where were you guys?” Dean asked, his lips pursed. 

“Oh uh- Jack wasn’t feeling well- Nothing bad!” He exclaimed much too loudly when the other two looked at him with concern. “I think he might have his first cold or something. So he went to bed and I stayed in case he needed anything.” Sam quickly finished. 

Cas and Dean exchanged a quick glance before returning their gazes to him. 

When the two men continued to stare at him, he added on. “Why are you back so early?” That finally took their focus off of him. 

“Don’t get me started.” Dean huffed out dramatically, turning his head to glare in Castiel’s direction.

Worry washed over Sam. Not only where they back early, but they didn’t seem very smitten. The opposite in fact. They were throwing each other pointedly angry glances. He’d never seem them be this overtly mad at each other. Silent treatment and ignoring each other’s existence was their usual methodology when it came to fighting. 

“What happened?” He asked, bracing himself. 

“Well-“ Dean started. 

“What happened is, is that your brother was extremely rude to the waitstaff.” Cas cut in; his voice stiff. He tilted his head at Dean accusatorily. 

“I wasn’t rude I-“ Dean paused and his eyes darted around as if he were trying to remember something. The silence lasted a moment too long. 

“Pie.” Cas suddenly cut in again. “You were berating them over their lack of pie.” He spoke emphatically. 

Dean and Cas shared a split-second look. It was serious, but it didn’t match the anger of their respective tones so far. However, Sam didn’t have time to mull it over as they continued to bicker. 

“Right uh- Well I wasn’t rude! I was just asking. You’re the one being dramatic.” Dean countered, glaring at Cas again.

Amusement simmered behind his eyes, and Sam wondered what he was finding funny. From Sam’s point of view, it wasn’t funny at all. In fact, it was a disaster. His and Jack’s plan to get the two to admit their feelings for one another had majorly backfired. 

Jack was not going to be happy. 

“Hey, guys. Chill out.” He finally interrupted their glaring match, patting Cas on the shoulder comfortingly. He assumed that Cas was probably in the right with whatever this was. 

“Yeah- well- you chill” Dean muttered back at him. 

“Come on D-“ Sam was cut off as Dean shouldered past him, coughing strangely as soon as he turned away. 

Castiel similarly huffed off, leaving Sam standing on his own, staring up at the ceiling in distress. 

“Did you two at least have dinner?” He called out. 

No one responded. 

With a sigh, he made his way to the kitchen to update Jack. They had a lot of work to do. And Jack was going to have to act sniffly for the next few days. 

…

A few hours later Dean sat on the edge of his bed, next to a box of pizza he’d found in the fridge soon after they’d gotten home. They’d only had time for entrées at the restaurant before Dean had grown impatient and decided they should get their plan started, much to Castiel’s annoyance. He had actually quite liked it there, despite not actually being able to eat anything. 

“It was great! He really bought it!” Dean chuckled as he and Cas conspired in his room. 

“I don’t think we should keep this up for much longer Dean.” Cas responded stoically. 

“Oh come on, don’t tell me you feel bad.” 

Cas gave him a look to suggest that was indeed how he felt.

“They tricked us first! This is payback until they cave and admit it, or until we find out what they’re up to.” He pointed his beer bottle at Cas. 

Cas sighed lightly. But soon after a slight smirk played at his features.

“That was… I must admit it was fun.” He smiled at Dean, who grinned back.

“Messing with Sam is always fun.” 

“What is his goal? You don’t think it’s anything serious, do you? Normally when you two lie to each other it involves secret deals, or angel possessions, or schemes, or working with your enem-“ He trailed off as Dean glared blankly at him. Cas looked back just as blankly. 

“Am I wrong?” He raised his eyebrows defiantly at Dean. 

After a moment Dean was the first to cave, looking away and rolling his eyes. 

“Okay maybe not. But I don’t think this is like that, I think this is about us.” 

“In what way?”

“That’s what we gotta figure out.” Dean pointed at him again with his bottle. His face conspiratorial. 

It was definitely immature. If it were Cas on his own, he would have just asked Sam and Jack what was going on. But Dean had roped him into an elaborate plot instead, and while he still thought it was childish, he was in fact having fun. More notably Dean seemed especially excited. And that was important to him. 

“Do you think it has something to do with why Jack was acting strange the other day? With the uh- the store clerk and then running off to Sam?” Cas questioned, holding back a smile that was threatening to surface.

Dean frowned. “What are you grinning about?” 

“Nothing.” He quickly said back before continuing.

“I was just wondering if it had anything to do with the store clerk-“ He paused for a moment. “The one whose number you did not keep.” He ended casually. He wasn’t sure what had prompted him to tack on that last detail. 

Dean’s eyes widened for a second and he immediately looked away. A red flush began to creep up his cheeks, no doubt at the mention of his strange outburst the other day. Why he’d been so determined for Cas to know he hadn’t kept that number, neither of them was really certain of. However, for some reason, it tinged Castiel with an unknown but familiar type of contentment. 

Dean coughed awkwardly. “Uh- Yeah. Um- maybe. Should we uh go back to the store and- No that’s- Nevermind.” He seemed to have lost any coherent train of thought all of sudden. 

Castiel internally noted that the room seemed smaller than it had a moment ago. He was hyper-aware of how much room the two of them were now taking up in it, as well as the distance between them. He shifted slightly where he stood, towards the direction of the door. 

It was silent for a moment. 

Wanting to put Dean out of his apparent discomfort he spoke up. “I guess we’ll find out as we uncover Jack and Sam’s scheme more.” He offered. Shifting the subject back to the plan at hand. 

Dean accepted the generosity. “Yeah! Exactly.” 

Despite the subject change, the energy in the room had once again transformed as it had in the kitchen the other day. It seemed to be happening more and more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya. Hoping you guys like chapter 2!! Lemme know what you think/where you think it's going xx


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jack and Sam seem to be arriving at the right answer using the wrong equation. Cas and Dean are clued in yet oblivious at the same time.

Dean glanced sideways over at Castiel as Sam sputtered his way through describing the case. The other man raised a brow in return for a split second, giving him a knowing expression. Sam was up to something again. 

“So what do you think?” Sam looked back and forth between the two with a hopeful expression. 

“A poltergeist at some couples yoga camp?” Dean muttered the words slowly, emphasising each one. Sam nodded enthusiastically in return. 

“Sounds great.” He paused for effect, allowing a smile to form on Sam’s face, before looking over and saying the rest to Cas. “In fact, I already saw the case yesterday and sent it off to a hunting couple we know.” He pointedly looked over at Sam whose expression had fallen. 

“Oh! Oh. I-” 

Cas and Dean eyed him warily. Eventually, it seemed as if their joint scrutiny became too much as he began to slowly get up and move away from the map table. “I’ll uh- I’m gonna go talk to Jack. About. Something.” He hastily exited the room. 

They watched him leave and sat in silence for a moment. 

“They still haven’t let up huh?” Dean quietly muttered to Cas, rubbing his temples in frustration. 

“They really haven’t” 

Over the course of several weeks, Sam and Jack had been constantly bombarding the two with outing ideas, duo hunts, and strange situations in general. Trying to figure out what it was all about was driving them mad. 

The two had been sent out to two more restaurants, a ski-rink, and a movie - with Jack and Sam not showing up to each outing at the last minute. Sam kept finding hunts for them to go on where it would be just the two of them - couple retreats being his latest obsession. 

And then it had just gotten straight-up weird. Cas now refused to move past the doorway any time they were alone in a room with a door. Dean couldn’t blame him exactly, they’d been ‘mysteriously’ locked in together four times now. The time Jack had sent Cas into the bathroom while Dean had been in there, and locked them in had been the last straw with that one. 

Of course, Sam and Jack denied anything was going on. 

At first Cas and Dean had played up their fighting angle to try and get more information. When that hadn’t worked they’d switched gears. 

“Maybe if they think we aren’t fighting anymore they’ll leave us alone.”

“We aren’t fighting though.” 

“Yeah but they think we are! So let’s- ya know- make up!” Dean had exclaimed. He’d assumed that would be it, and so they’d walked back into the bunker after another set-up, acting as chummy as ever. 

At first, they thought it had worked since the other two had seemed strangely excited. However, since then they’d become even more insufferable and continued proposing more ‘family outings’. 

Dean had to admit - despite all his grumbling - it wasn’t as if he wasn’t having fun. It wasn’t just teaming up against Jack and Sam that was entertaining. All the time he’d been spending with Cas, it had been making him a lot happier. Cas seemed to be enjoying it too. Still, he had to figure out what his idiot brother and kid were up to. 

“Do you think they’ll ever stop?” He sighed, tilting his head over towards Cas. 

“I fear they may never leave us alone,” Cas muttered gravely and looked over at Dean who could see the humour whirling in his eyes. Dean huffed out a laugh, shaking his head but not breaking eye contact. 

Their eyes remained locked together for a moment longer until finally, Cas looked away. Dean instantly missed the connection.

“I uh-” He started. He could sense the words that were about to slip out of his mouth, and if it had been a few weeks ago he may have been concerned. But all that time with Cas had definitely loosened him up a little. It didn’t help that Cas was always so upfront, sometimes jarringly so. That meant that Dean had also started saying things more openly. Well, bar a few. 

“I know those two have clearly lost their minds or something. But still uh- it’s been fun hanging out with you buddy.” He coughed awkwardly. He could feel his cheeks heating up. 

It was worth it though. Cas looked over at him again with the softest smile, his brows furrowed slightly as if he knew but couldn't believe he got to hear it. 

“You know I feel the same way, Dean.”

Dean dropped his head as he smiled. “Hah. Thanks man.” 

…

“Jack I don’t think we can go to Vegas.”

“Why not? I saw it in a movie. We take them to Vegas, they’ll get drunk and married. It’s perfect!” 

Sam pinched his brows. The plan was taking a lot longer than expected and they were both starting to lose it slightly. However, he was glad to see that even he still had limits. 

“Jack it’s just.- We want them to admit their feelings for each other you know? Them getting married in Vegas it-” He sighed. For a split second, he considered considering it, before his better judgement kicked back in. “One, we can’t guarantee they even would get drunk and married, and two, it would probably just freak Dean out and then we’d be back to square one.”

Jack sighed dramatically. “I guess so. It’s just taking so long.” He looked down despondently. 

Sam pondered other possibilities for a moment before suddenly something clicked, his eyes widened. 

“Wait! You might be onto something though.” He turned to Jack with a smile. Jack looked back up at him with wide hopeful eyes. 

“Dean had mentioned wanting to go on a vacation. A beach trip. So how about this; we take them on a trip, and get them to spend as much time together as possible, hell we can even make sure they get a cabin or room or whatever together.” He raised his brows at Jack, then nodded to himself. Finally, they had another plan. The couples retreats hadn’t really been working out for them, and Dean had started catching onto the fact that half of them weren’t even real hunts. 

Jack looked practically giddy as he mulled over the idea. “And that means we get to go to the beach!” He added on excitedly. Sam couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“Should we tell them now?” He questioned, looking up at Sam. 

“Why not?” Sam shrugged. “Let’s go.”

They made their way out of Jack’s room, down the hallway, and towards the map table. Dean and Cas were still seated where they had been before, and were talking among themselves quietly. They stopped as they saw Jack and Sam approach. Sam could swear they shared a scared look of sorts as they saw him and Jack walk up. 

“Hello,” said Jack. 

“Hi,” Dean responded. It sounded like a question. 

“So, we were thinking. It’s about time we finally go on that vacation.” Sam looked at Dean, smiling in a way he hoped seemed genuine and not suspicious. 

The two men at the table glanced at each other confusedly and then back up at Sam. 

“The beach vacation you talked about Dean. Let's go! We can take a few days, road-trip over, stay in a little resort or a beach house or something.” Sam explained. As he did, he had to admit, even aside from the plan it did sound kind of nice. 

“Oh hell no.” Dean suddenly cut in. 

At that Jack and Sam whipped their heads over to look at Dean. Cas was nodding next to him as if he already knew what he was about to say. 

“I’m not letting you guys abandon us on some beach in the middle of nowhere and drive off, or lock us in some port-a-loo, or- or- whatever it is you’re planning on doing.” Dean shook his head dramatically, he pointed at them as he did so. 

“I agree,” Cas interjected. “I won’t be locked in a bathroom again.”

“Locked in a bath-” Sam began. Then his gaze landed on Jack who was pointedly not looking at him. Oh, great, he had a rogue agent. He sighed and looked back over at the two men at the table.

“There’s no plan. We didn’t mean to not show up all those times, things just- kept coming up." He asserted half-heartedly. "Come on Dean you’ve wanted a beach trip for so long.”

Dean only continued to shake his head. “Not happening.” He slowly got up and Cas followed. 

“If you two want to go to the beach, go ahead.” He pointed accusingly at them again. 

At Jack’s solemn expression Cas added, “Any one of us would be happy to go to the beach with you Jack.” Then he looked over at Sam with a squint. “Just not the two of us together.” 

With that, Cas and Dean made their way out of the room, off to who knew where. 

“Great,” Sam whispered to himself. 

…

“I feel bad for Jack.”

“Listen, I’ll plan a vacation for all four of us sometime soon okay? I just don’t trust sasquatch and his minion for now,” Dean muttered, placing his beer bottle down on the kitchen counter. 

Cas huffed out a silent laugh, before smiling lightly. “That sounds nice actually.” 

They remained in comfortable silence for a moment, before Dean remembered something. He quickly stole a glance at Cas before looking away again and taking in a breath. 

“Uh- so you remember that restaurant they ditched us at?” 

“Which one?” Cas looked up at him, sarcasm underlying his tone. 

“The second one. Way too fancy.” He clarified. 

Cas made a face. “Yes. While we didn’t agree on the first one, even I have to admit that wasn’t the most welcoming establishment.” 

Dean nodded back, recalling the memory. Not only had it been ten times stuffier than the first place Sam had chosen. But they’d also gotten weird looks from some of the patrons as soon as they’d walked in together and been seated at that fire-hazard of a candle-lit table. The food had not been worth that. 

The only plus side had been their friendly waitress who’d given them recommendations of places she liked going to with her girlfriend. ‘A lot friendlier’ she had said. He found it strange she’d taken such a liking to them at first, but ultimately he’d come around. 

Cas snapped him out of his thoughts by speaking up again. “What were you going to say about the restaurant?” He questioned, genuinely curious.

“Oh yeah- Right- So I searched up some of those places uh? Linda?”

“Lacey.”

“Right. That Lacey told us about. And I found this one that seemed kinda nice actually.” He quietened slightly by the end of the sentence, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. When he looked up he saw Cas smirking at him, which really wasn’t helping. 

“That’s nice.” He responded, smirk still intact. 

Dean rolled his eyes, huffing out. The irritation at his friend’s sassiness suddenly washed away the nerves he’d felt. Not that there was anything to be nervous about. 

“Well? Do you wanna go check it out?” Dean snapped, mostly lightheartedly. To his dismay, Cas’ smirk had only grown. 

“You know I don’t eat right?” 

“Well you had a fun time at that third place, so I thought- Nevermind I-”

“Dean” Cas cut in, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. “Of course I’ll come.” 

Dean’s frown washed away, and he straightened up. “Oh. Um- Good. Nice. Thanks.” He nodded awkwardly. For some reason, he felt more nervous. It’s not like he hadn’t had dinner with Cas before. Hell, they’d spent more time together in the previous weeks than they had in a long time. But still, he couldn’t help the unexplainable nerves. 

“Should we ask Jack and Sam to come along?” That snapped Dean out of his nervous spiral all of a sudden. 

“Oh, I thought more just us. I mean- They’ll probably just ditch us again anyway right?” Dean reasoned, both to himself and Cas. 

“You’re right.” Cas nodded solemnly, however, Dean could hear the humour in his voice. “Let me know when you want to go.” He finished as he began to walk out of the kitchen, leaving Dean to stew in whatever it was he was feeling. 

Dean watched him make his way to the doorway when suddenly he stopped and turned around. 

“Oh and I- I enjoy the restaurant’s because I like spending time with you.” And with that, he walked away. 

As if he hadn’t just knocked the air out of Dean’s lungs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope yall are enjoying this and that it's as fun to read as it is to write! xx


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